Entertaining

Graduation

Plan a great party to celebrate your graduate’s many accomplishments.

Choose a date near graduation. Don’t hesitate to consider a date after the event.
Have the graduate make a list of friends and relatives to invite. This is a very busy time of year, so send invitations out well in advance.
A fun idea for invitations might be a “blue book” exam.
On a sheet of white paper ask a list of questions - if you went to (name of graduate) party would you want:
- lots of food
- a disc jockey
- a fun swim
Fill in party details at the bottom of the sheet of white paper.
Fold a sheet of blue paper over the white paper and staple like a blue book.
Another idea for an invitation:
- Photocopy a grade-school picture of the graduate.
- Write party details on the reverse side.

Include the graduate in the planning. What are his/her favorite foods? Some ideas might be:
- A backyard barbecue of hamburgers and hot dogs
- A pizza party
- A make-your-own taco buffet
- Quick delicious brownies, bars and cookies you can make ahead are ideal for dessert
Check out our collection of recipes for more ideas.

Plan good music for a party.
- Arrange CDs in the order you wish to play them.
- Find a good radio station.
- Increase the volume as the evening moves along.
Play a movie on the TV with no sound.
Decorate with oversized diplomas tied with ribbons.
Decorate the serving table with school memorabilia: textbooks, pom-poms, pennants, prom pictures, yearbook.
Decorate with enlarged pictures of seniors.
Arrange “bouquets” of Mylar balloons in school colors.
Use streamers in school colors.
Enlarge job ads from newspaper and place on wall.
Pin up pennants of colleges where graduates may be attending.
Purchase special graduation paper tableware and napkins.

Graduation parties are typically open houses where people drift in and out, so organized activities are usually not needed.
You could provide a collection of yearbooks for friends and relatives to look through.
Graduation parties typically involve lots of young people...with lots of energy! It wouldn’t hurt (if room provides) to have a volleyball net, a dart game, or a ping-pong table available.